Sappho's Fire offers understanding about the journey that all of us must travel and the ways in which to reclaim one's older life. By following the stories of older lesbians who live in New England, viewers come to understand the deep-seated and often impenetrable fears of growing older without the certainties of family support or sufficient economical investment to obtain an appropriate retirement. What slowly unravels in Sappho's Fire is the complexity of calling oneself 'old' and the expression of this stage of life as a lesbian.